Once the shreds of wrapping paper have been discarded and the left-overs of holiday feasts have been consumed, the focus turns to getting rid of the Christmas tree. Please, DO NOT throw your Real Christmas Tree in the trash! Real Christmas Trees are biodegradable, which means they can be easily reused or recycled for mulch and other purposes. Here are some recycling options and tips on what to do with your tree after the holidays.

Ornaments, stands, lights, artificial trees and wire wreaths are NOT ACCEPTED. Please remove trees from plastic bags. Trees will be chipped and used for compost or mulch.

Carver County Environmental Center

After Christmas, Carver County residents can self-haul their Christmas trees to the Environmental Center for recycling.  This service is available through the end of February each year and is free to Carver County residents. Please note that yard waste (grass and leaves) and brush will NOT be accepted as the Environmental Center no longer accepts those materials.  Visit the Environmental Center page for hours and location.

Private Hauler Curbside Collection

Contact your private refuse hauler to ask if they collect real Christmas trees for recycling. Some haulers offer this service for free to their customers and some charge a nominal fee. Residents with seasonal curbside yard waste collection typically receive this service at no additional charge.

Private Compost Sites

The following compost sites are owned and operated by private entities and are open to residents and businesses year round. Please call ahead to inquire about disposal fees, hours of operation and delivery instructions.

Boy Scout Curbside Collection

Chanhassen, Chaska, and Victoria

Boy Scout Troop 337 collects Christmas trees door-to-door and delivers them to a compost site for a small fee. This event helps raise funds for the troop’s annual operating expenses and camp scholarships along with providing a service to residents in disposing of their trees properly and conveniently. To take advantage of this service, you must sign up for it by the deadline.

Email Troop 337 at bsatroop3337@gmail.com with your name, address, and phone number, and they will provide you with any further details.

Please Note:  The Boy Scout collection is not a Carver County program.  For more information on the program, please contact Boy Scout Troop 337.

Cities with Christmas Tree Recycling Programs

The following cities offer no charge Christmas tree recycling options to their residents.

Cologne 

Residents can drop off trees at the City of Cologne Public Works garage, 304 Louis St W (roll-off box south of the Cologne City Public Works garage).

Mayer and New Germany

Residents can drop off trees at the City of Mayer yard waste site 15300 County Rd 30, Mayer.  Visit the Rural Recycling Drop-Off Site page for hours and location.

Norwood Young America

Residents can drop off trees at the City of NYA yard waste site located at 640 Tacoma Blvd, NYA.

Other Disposal Options

Some communities use Christmas trees to make effective sand and soil erosion barriers, especially for lake and river shoreline stabilization and river delta sedimentation management. Christmas trees even helped the sand dunes in New Jersey recover from Hurricane Sandy!

Sunk into private fish ponds, trees make an excellent refuge and feeding area for fish.

Place the Christmas tree in the garden or backyard and use it as a bird feeder and sanctuary. Fresh orange slices or strung popcorn will attract the birds and they can sit in the branches for shelter. (Make sure all decorations, hooks, garland and tinsel strands are removed). Eventually (within a year) the branches will become brittle and you can break the tree apart by hand or chip it in a chipper. See this article from Perdue University for more information.

A Christmas tree is biodegradable; its branches may be removed, chipped, and used as mulch in the garden. If you have a neighbor with a chipper, see if they will chip it for you.

Of course, next year, you could get a rooted (ball and burlap or containerized) tree and then plant it in your yard after Christmas. (It’s a good idea to pre-dig the hole in the late fall while the soil is still soft, then plant the tree into that hole immediately after Christmas.) Living trees have a better survival rate in mild climates.

Holiday lights can be dropped off at NO CHARGE at the Environmental Center.